Paranthropus boisei or Australopithecus boisei was an early hominin, described as the largest of the Paranthropus genus (robust australopithecines). It lived in Eastern Africa during the Pleistocene epoch from about 2.3 [discovered in Omo in Ethiopia] until about 1.2 million years ago. The largest skull specimen found of Paranthropus boisei is dated to 1.4 million years old, discovered at Konso in Ethiopia.

PARANTHROPUS BOISEI

PARANTHROPUS BOISEI

Genus:

Paranthropus

Species:

Paranthropus boisei

Other Names:

Nutcracker Man

Time Period:

2.3 to 1.2 million years ago

Characteristics:

Tool User

Fossil Evidence:

Cranium Fossil, Tanzania, Africa

PARANTHROPUS BOISEI

Paranthropus boisei

The well-preserved cranium of Paranthropus boisei was first discovered by Mary Leakey in the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania in 1959. It was given the nick-name 'Nutcracker Man' because of its large flat cheek teeth and thick enamel. The fossil was dated to 1.75 million years old and had characteristics distinctive of the robust australopithecines. Mary Leakey’s son Richard discovered another skull at Koobi Fora near Lake Turkana in Kenya in 1969. It was Richard Leakey who stated that Paranthropus boisei was the first hominin species to use stone tools.

The relatively small brain size of 550 cm3 is similar to that of Australopithecus afarensis and Australopithecus africanus. Males were larger than females, as with all australopithecine species, standing 1.37 and 1.24 meters tall respectively. The skull was designed for heavy chewing of ground tubers, nuts and seeds. Paranthropus boisei inhabited savannah and woodland environments [McHenry, H.M.; Coffing. K. 2000].